Aston Villa have been one of the busiest clubs in the transfer market this summer, not just in the Premier League but out of all the 92 league clubs in the top four divisions.

Big-name players such as Christian Benteke and Fabian Delph were sold, while as many as 13 players arrived in either in the form of a permanent deal or long-term loan.

Despite getting plenty of activity done early, Villa still had a few surprises left on deadline day as they signed Joleon Lescott, goalkeeper Matija Sarkic and defender Tiago Llori on loan from Liverpool.

Ultimately finding his best starting XI will be a big challenge for boss Tim Sherwood, but it’s the sort of challenge and selection headache he would prefer to have than not.

As per the graphic above, this is how we feel would be Villa’s strongest starting XI though with so many options available, there are plenty of alternatives and personnel better suited for different occasions.

In defence, deadline day arrival Joleon Lescott comes in for Ciaran Clark at centre-back alongside Micah Richards due to his general knowhow and experience.

Jordan Amavi and Leandro Bacuna provide a good balance at fullbacks with the former an excellent dribbler and attacking option while the latter is more reserved, despite not being a natural right-back.

In midfield, Idrissa Gueye, Ashley Westwood and Jack Grealish offer plenty of youthfulness, bite, skill, aggression and intelligence depute the trio not exactly being season veterans.

Options are there for Sherwood to really change things up in the final third, but Adama Traore and Scott Sinclair offer a real threat in terms of pace and strength while Rudy Gestede is a bull through in the middle.

With the likes of Gabby Agbonlahor, Jordan Ayew, Jordan Veretout, Carles Gil and Charles N’Zogbia in reserve, this is arguably Villa’s best set of attacking players available for a number of years.

Tom Thorogood

I'm a 27 year old language teacher and writer based out in Mexico with a passion for football and swimming. I like to focus on the top European Leagues, especially La Liga, as well as the footballing development in Central and South America. My favourite teams include Derby County, Barcelona and Jagaures de Chiapas.